You can expect an average school bus weight to be about 24,387 pounds (11,062 kg).
When looking at the specs for different school busses, the weight will be typically listed as GVWR. This stands for gross vehicle weight rating or the maximum weight of the vehicle including the vehicle’s chassis, body, engine, engine fluids, fuel, accessories, driver, passengers, and cargo, excluding any trailers.
For pulling a school bus, it’s recommended to use a truck that can tow at least 15,000 pounds for the lightest school busses. This would account for the additional weight of passengers and cargo. The average F-350 truck can handle a towing capacity of 12,000 to 20,000 pounds depending on your model. With most larger school busses, you’ll need a commercial-grade tow vehicle to haul them if they cannot be driven.
Many school bus resale companies do offer bus delivery. However, if you do plan to tow a school bus yourself, or drive it over certain areas, it’s important to know your bus weight for legal and safe driving.
Make sure to check your vehicle’s towing capacity. This can be found in your owner’s manual or the manufacturer’s website as your gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR).
7 Example School Bus Weights
The following chart features example school bus weights of specific models ranging from the lightest to the heaviest used on the road. Additional details can be found on the manufacturer’s websites. Here’s the school bus weight chart:
| School Bus Model | Estimated GVWR |
| 2005 Chevrolet Collins | 12,000 lbs (5,443 kg) |
| 2008 Chevrolet Thomas | 12,300 lbs (5,579 kg) |
| 2000 GMC Bluebird | 22,000 lbs (9,979 kg) |
| 2002 GMC Bluebird | 27,060 lbs (12,274 kg) |
| 2008 Freightliner Thomas | 29,000 lbs (13,154 kg) |
| 2007 Thomas Saf-T-Liner EF | 33,000 lbs (14,969 kg) |
| 2005 Thomas HDX RE | 35,350 lbs (16,034 kg) |
Source: WeSellSchoolBusses
Additional Weight and Trailer Options
The additional weight you will encounter with a school bus will come from a few areas. Those areas being seats, add-ons, handicap lifts, additional storage, and fuel or propane gas (wet weight). This creates an additional weight to consider when towing and traveling on a school bus.
Make sure to refer to your vehicle’s owner’s manual and read the section on towing capacity. It’s always safer to leave some extra wiggle room to not damage your engine.
To Conclude
School busses provide a great mode of transport out on the road, whether that’s for transporting kids, or a buildout for a school bus conversion aka skoolie. Each make, model, and size comes along with its own weight based on use and if any mods are installed. The key factors to consider the weight of a school bus come down to:
- Length
- Seats
- Construction/material
- What’s stored inside
- Fuel tank/gas propane
It’s important to know the correct weight when looking to tow and transport your school bus. If you’re unsure and want specific weights, you can always check the manufacture’s website or go to a local cat scale to get a more accurate weight.